Jhansi: Expired fire extinguishers were found outside the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Uttar Pradesh’s Jhansi Medical College, where a devastating fire claimed the lives of 10 newborns on Friday night.
On Saturday morning, as ETV Bharat visited the site of the tragedy, the certificates pasted on at least two fire extinguishers kept outside the ward which went up in flames showed they had been last refilled on July 25, 2019 and were due to be filled again in 2021.
Parents of the deceased infants also alleged that the fire safety alarms failed to go off. Speaking to ETV Bharat, one of the parents claimed that the cylinder inside the NICU did not work when they tried to use it.
Senior SP leader and former MP Chandrapal Singh Yadav blamed the medical college administration for the tragedy. He questioned why the short circuit, which occurred at 5 pm, was not immediately repaired, leaving innocent lives at risk until 10 pm.
"The administration of the medical college is responsible for the incident. The incident happened because of negligence. It is being said that the short circuit happened around 5 pm but it was not taken seriously. They just fixed it. Strict action should be taken against the people who are responsible," he said.
Hours after the fire claimed the lives of newborn children, the Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday announced financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh each to the parents of the deceased, an official said.
At least 10 children died in the fire that engulfed the children's ward of the medical college as 16 others injured battled for life on Friday night.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak said DNA tests if required, will be conducted to identify three of the ten newborns who died in the fire. Seven of the deceased have been identified. Speaking to reporters, Pathak said, "Ten newborns have died, seven have been identified, and three are yet to be identified. If required, DNA tests will be conducted."
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